Guys n Gals: Very torn here.

[Keysplayr]

Both options are under 500.00. "Just" under 500.00 at MC.

DX11 is supposed to have better multi-CPU support, so I am hesitant going with the P55 for the sole reason that six-core 1366 32nm CPU's will be able to drop into the x58. While the only thing I have to look forward to for P55 upgrade is a Clarkdale 2C/4T with integrated video chip. I'm a bit torn. Both platforms are about the same price considering I already have 2 6GB triple channel DDR3 1600 kits (12GB total). Going Win7 64bit BTW.

920 is said to be an awesome o/c'er, no worries about PCI-e voltage on core. This makes me pause on the 860. Although it has a very impressive Turbo mode.

Help me out folks. Don't know which way to go. Talk some sense into me. LOL.

Thanks,

Keys

 

[SmCaudata]

Sounds like you like the 920 but are torn because the other one is newer. First off... I'm not sure if we know that all x58 boards will be able to handle the 6 core CPUs. They likely will through bios updates, but that is not a sure thing as far as I know. I could be wrong.

If you are going to overclock quite a bit then the 920 is better. If you want dual vid cards than the 920 is better.

If you want power savings and plan to go single vid cards with only minor overclock than the 860 is better.

 

[Bleser]

Lots of discussions on this lately, and rightfully so.

I've been doing this kind of thing for 15 years now, and I've learned one thing from my expieriences: every time I buy a particular motherboard/chipset/CPU combo with the thought that I can drop in a future CPU, it ends up being a total waste of time. Even if it is only six to nine months down the road, there is usually either a better bang-for-your-buck upgrade (like a SSD or new video card), or it is slightly longer (12-18 months) and a new CPU/motherboard is the better option anyway. So, the fact that you can upgrade the CPU only in the future has little value to me. I mean, if AMD pulls a surprise and outdoes Intel in every benchmark you'll need a new platform and won't hesitate to swap out. And with the likes of eBay, you can sell your current hardware for very decent prices and there is always a buyer.

So, I'd go with the 860. The turbo mode and cheaper motherboards won me over to the P55. I have a core i5 750 running @ 167 base clock (3.32 GHz CPU) and she throttles up nicely to 4 GHz during the majority of the games I play (all single-threaded). This is from a $330 CPU/motherboard combo (motherboard is Asus P7P55D). X58 might offer full x16 lanes in SLI but only matters if you play at 2560x1600 and even then the benefit is marginal.

Both are going to serve you well, but I think the turbo mode and advanced core shutdown features of the new 860 win the battle.

 

[SmCaudata]

Blesser makes a good point. You did say you were looking at the 860 but for less than $300 you can have yourself an i5 750 plus motherboard at Microcenter. If you want to go with a higher end mobo then you still save yourself $70+tax on the i5 750. 30% savings for a negligible performance hit in everything except for heavy multi-tasking/multi-threaded applications.you can put toward an SSD, a better vid card, or save for a future mobo when you do decide to upgrade your CPU. If you go with the lower cost mobos (I won't say cheap because they all still have 8 phase power, 1 or 2 eSATA, optical and digital coaxial out) you can save $100 over the 920.

 

[Mr Fox]

Originally posted by: Keysplayr
Both options are under 500.00. "Just" under 500.00 at MC.

DX11 is supposed to have better multi-CPU support, so I am hesitant going with the P55 for the sole reason that six-core 1366 32nm CPU's will be able to drop into the x58. While the only thing I have to look forward to for P55 upgrade is a Clarkdale 2C/4T with integrated video chip. I'm a bit torn. Both platforms are about the same price considering I already have 2 6GB triple channel DDR3 1600 kits (12GB total). Going Win7 64bit BTW.

920 is said to be an awesome o/c'er, no worries about PCI-e voltage on core. This makes me pause on the 860. Although it has a very impressive Turbo mode.

Help me out folks. Don't know which way to go. Talk some sense into me. LOL.

Thanks,

Keys

I think that Lal hit it right on the head... It's a No brainer LGA 1366 has more future, and the features are more forgiving.....

Be sure to add an SSD they make the whole thing as well

I'm into W7 in 20 seconds..

Make sure that you are getting a "D0" Stepping

The P6T, Or P6T DLX. make it very easy I have two P6T DLX...

 

[Denithor]

You're not running dual GPUs in SLI mode so I see no drawback to a P55 motherboard.

Bleser & SmCaudata are right on here. Pick up an i5 750 and a P55 mobo and spend the $200 you save on an Intel G2. From everything I've heard that will net you a faster/more responsive system than spending $500 on either of the i7 setups with a standard HDD.

 

[Gillbot]

i7 because it's +2 over i5.

Aside from that, I thought the benefit of triple channel and i7 was better for gaming over dual channel and i5?

 

[MyLeftNut]

If it's between the 920 and 860 for roughly the same price the bloomfield platform hands down. How about the additional pci-e lanes available for add-ons useful for a bunch of high bandwidth needs? Have you considered if you'll be wanting those? Otherwise, going cheap on the 750 on P55 would be the more appealing option when you can save on features you won't use.

I made my decision to go with the bloomfield platform with roughly the same price as the lynnfield not because of an extra pci-e 16x graphics slot, but for additional pci-e lanes that I will want to use without saturating. Consider how much peripheral usage you'll be needing outside of just processing power, as for that alone, both platforms only differ in price options which in your case the same between 920 and 860. Furthermore, what is there in that P55 FTW board that makes it much more appealing to your decision than a cheaper P55 board? Is there an actual functional purpose? Or are you buying strictly for the satisfaction of prestige? If that's the case, would you rather be looking at a deluxe bloomfield platform although you may need to spend more? If you're just buying to play around and tinker with, funds aside, have you considered that you'll want to eventually buy both platforms?

 

[imported_Lothar]

I am torn on this very issue as well.
I have a MicroCenter 40 minutes from me.

Options for me are a "stop gap" i5 750(many new tech are around the corner with Sandy bridge, PCIe 3.0, SATA3, USB3), i7 860, or i7 920.

I don't care about SLI or Crossfire.
I don't care about the future "upgrade" the X58 offers. I've always changed mobo when I changed CPU.

Also, will there be an i7 850(an i5 750 with HT support) processor?

 

[Bleser]

Originally posted by: Gillbot
i7 because it's +2 over i5.

Aside from that, I thought the benefit of triple channel and i7 was better for gaming over dual channel and i5?

Take a look at some of Anand's articles and others around the web that discuss this. Dual versus triple channel has very little to no performance advantage today - nothing needs the bandwidth it provides. Things like your video card setup and actual clock speed have far more importance than this.

 

[Pneumothorax]

Surprised no one has noticed that the OP already has 12gb of DDR3 in a 6x2gb configuration. No P55 based board will run with this much ram at this time. So unless you plan on selling some of your ram, you will need a X58 mobo to use it. (And yes I know some P55 mobos do have 6 slots, BUT 2 of those slots will only work with single-sided ram which 2gb ram is not)

 

[rpv]

what makes it more difficult for me is that I got the i7 920 along with Windows Vista for 129$ using the intel retail edge program(my friend worked for one of the retailers)...I am debating on selling it off and getting the i5 or the i7 860....

 

[aigomorla]

from what im seeing.

On average the i7 920 is a better overclocker then the i5 860.

So if ur an overclocker, i would grab the 920 D0 system.

 

[v8envy]

i7 920. You may not be running dual GPUs right now, but that second PhysX card will slam your primary card into PCIe 8x mode. With new video hardware on the horizon (and you KNOW you'll be getting the GT300) it may not be the best idea to limit the pipeline to your GPU(s). You want to show nv off in the best possible light? Don't skimp on the PCIe lanes.

The i860 is by far the winnar for stock, non-overclocked, mainstream gaming. That's not you. Other than power use the two chips are very well matched, so why not go with the more capable chipset platform?

 

[sgrinavi]

For the same money is there even a question? x58 all the way.

 

[Munky]

FYI, some P55 boards like the Asus P7P55D have the second pci-e slot running off the SB using 4 lanes, while the primary slot is only full 16 lanes. That would allow you to add a second video card for Physx and not cut into the primary slot bandwidth. I'm currently switching over to i7 860 (microcenter deal), and that's the board I chose.

 

[atran5e]

Since you have the ddr3 sticks, I would say stick to x58, and i7. The 920 D0 for 200$ and the mobo for around the same price. Thats about 400-450. And you don't have to sell your ddr3 sticks and loose money on those.

 

[Jumpem]

Originally posted by: munky
FYI, some P55 boards like the Asus P7P55D have the second pci-e slot running off the SB using 4 lanes, while the primary slot is only full 16 lanes. That would allow you to add a second video card for Physx and not cut into the primary slot bandwidth. I'm currently switching over to i7 860 (microcenter deal), and that's the board I chose.

This.

 

[Grooveriding]

I just made this decision and went i7 920. If both are priced the same, the 920 is the better performer. Once you overclock it, it outperforms i5. If multi-gpu does interest you, obviously that makes it the right choice as well.

Performance wise, a 920 D0 outperforms the entire i5 lineup once you overclock it. Not that the difference is vast, but it's there.

 

[Keysplayr]

Wow!! Lots of info. Thanks to all of you!!!

Ok, It's more likely that I will be using SLI than not, so I lean toward X58. I do have a great CPU cooler that has 775 and 1366 mounting hardware. I also do have 12GB of DDR3 1600 (2 6GB kits all matched). It would be beyond saweettt to be able to use all the memory.

Oh, for those wondering why I have the eVGA P55 FTW edition board? Look what that board comes with for overclocking. It has a separate panel that plugs into the mobo with reset, power, CMOS reset/select, Voltage control. I was quite impressed with that.

So IF I was going with Lynnfield, that would be the board I'd get. But now since I'm getting the Bloomfield (too many plusses for my usage) thanks to some suggestions/threats/advice , I'll be going with that P6T. Not much difference between P6T and P6T Deluxe besides different audio chip (realtek on P6T) and lack of SAS controller, and 1 less Gigabit Ethernet port. I only need one.

So, that is that. The biggest reason for me is SLI performance. If I knew I was only going to use 1 card, then it wouldn't be such a big deal. But I've been using SLI on and off for about two years now, only stopped because I currently use a GTX295.

So, i7 is for me. Nothing at all wrong with P55 though, after all, I had some real trouble deciding between the two and needed other voices to chime in to make me see some things I had overlooked.

A microcenter trip is in order. Now, I'm officially psyched.

Addressing that 16x 8x 4x deal. P55 southbridge handles the PhysX 4x slot and doesn't pull resources away from the PCI-e controller in the CPU. Okay, that is kewl. However, the P6T has 2 16x PCI-e slots and 1 4x slot. It has been said that even an 8x PCI-e slot is sufficient to run even the most powerhouse card out there without performance hits. So even if the speed of the PCI-e slot is hampered if I have a PhysX card in the 4x slot, how much could it actually affect the 2x 16x slots? To be honest, I don't think this will make that much of a difference. Even with R8xx's or GT300's.

Thanks again for all the very cool comments. Keep em coming. I have 5 days to change my mind! LOL.

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

X58 supports 36 PCI-Express 2.0 so having the PhysX card in the x4 slot wont detract from the two x16 slots.

 

[atran5e]

x58, especially if you upgrade to a bigger screen 1080p and up, SLI/Xfire will most likely be needed.

 

[GEOrifle]

I'm on the same boat: got i7 920 D0 with CM V8 CPU cooler, OCZ XMP 3x2(6GB), WDR 150GB+1TB WD Black+1TB HITACHI HDD's.
So i'm loocking for Motherboard and GPU.
As ATI is releasing in one month next DX11 platform i'll wait.
Motherboard i choose ASUS but i don't know which to pick:
P6T DELUXE-$280
P6TD DELUXE-$280+S.TX
P6T RAMPAGE II EXTREME -$350

P6T RAMPAGE II EXTREME locks nice but how better is it over P6T and P6TD DELUXE boards ? Is it worth $350 ?
IS ASUS really changing RMA-ed board by REFUB ?
Can someone help me with it?

 

[atran5e]

I'd go with Gigabyte UD5

 

[aigomorla]

keys nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CRAPSUS... please no... heaven forbid no..

god no.....

Looks at my old pictures... *shivers* NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO
http://i125.photobucket.com/al...aigomorla/IMG_0141.jpg

Can i cry and say no one more time?

eVGA X58 LE
Giggy X58 series...

Please with a cherry on top?

Originally posted by: GEOrifle

P6T RAMPAGE II EXTREME locks nice but how better is it over P6T and P6TD DELUXE boards ? Is it worth $350 ?
IS ASUS really changing RMA-ed board by REFUB ?
Can someone help me with it?

The R2E is such a better board. However its pricey...
And yes ASUS RMA Blows... the P6T board also had a ton of turbo throttling issues, as well as other issues.
UGH... dont get me started on crapsus...

That nightmare was quickly erased when i got a classified.